1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a medical image processing apparatus and medical image processing method for performing image processing including creating an image of a developed view of a medical image such as an endoscopic image.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, endoscopes have been widely adopted in medical fields. For example, Barrett's esophagus is one disease of the esophagus.
The esophagus is covered by the mucosa of the squamous epithelium, and the stomach and the intestine are covered by the mucosa of the columnar epithelium. Barrett's esophagus is considered that the mucosa of the esophagus (the squamous epithelium) near the junction between the stomach and the esophagus is denatured to a columnar epithelium continuously from the stomach due to the backflow of stomach acids to the esophagus.
In order to diagnose Barrett's esophagus, an endoscopic diagnosis may be applied that uses an endoscope to observe how the columnar epithelium present continuously from the esophagogastric junction extends and a distinctive form of the junction between the columnar epithelium and the squamous epithelium.
As a prior art, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 8-256295 discloses means for correcting an optical distortion occurring in the periphery of a captured endoscopic image.